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Lena had a hard time getting the tablets out of the bag that Lola had been holding open for her. Lena looked thankful as Lola helped her drink from a glass of water to take her medications.
After a while, the pain becomes less strong. Lola had been caressing Lena’s back the whole time with a worried look on her face.
The medications made Lena numb, which was a fake relief. She was still trying to get used to it.
But the fortunate thing about her small incident at that point made what Lola saw earlier a different story. Lola was fascinated by Kellen’s reported deep interest in Lena, but her health was more important to her.
So, when Lola eventually started the questioning, it didn’t sound like an interrogation. Thank goodness.
“Did the crazy person touch you?”
But it was still just as embarrassing.
Lena cleared her throat. “Nope.”
Lola looked like she was thinking. “Did you both then touch each other inappropriately?”
“No way, Lola!” Lena said, breathing heavily. “We were fighting about how he was always breathing down Damien’s neck.” At least it wasn’t a lie. “And then, like the crazy man he is, he stalked closer to threaten me.”
“Thank God for the person who made threats if what I saw was a bloody threat!” Lola said, throwing her hands up in frustration. “For Heaven’s sake, Lena, it’s clear that he was trying to cast a spell on you and cheat on his fiancée with you.”
Lola angrily put a hand on Lena’s shoulder and said, “That maniac is really a filthy thing. His interest in you is very interesting, but he’s bloody engaged to that model, and whatever he’s trying to do now is so f*****g wrong.”
Lola did an excellent job of explaining what was going on here. Lena was quite relieved.
Lena said, “I agree.”
Kellen was completely overwhelmed by all that was wrong. What if he viewed the photo immediately?
Would she be alive to see that day?
In any case, she didn’t care anymore. So much had happened in the last several months, so much had changed, and so much had been lost.
Nothing on earth or in heaven can bring back the past.
When things became too hard, and the tension seemed like it was going to kill her, with painful memories closing in on her from all sides, her safe place always rescued her. Gwen’s orphanage visits on Sundays were regular, but lately, these surprise visits were becoming frequent, too.
Lena sat on a seat in the orphanage’s field that night. She was bouncing Dave on her lap. She smiled as the youngster laughed and cried with joy.
Gwen sighed and said, “I’m sorry, Lena,” looking at her with sympathy. “I can’t give Dave to you, no matter how much I want to.”
Lena was right: her application to adopt was probably turned down. This time, the lethal sickness that was ticking like a time bomb in her head triumphed.
Lena’s eyes filled with tears, but she was able to grin through them. “I get it, Mom.”
She got it. She did, that’s for sure.
Dave deserved the best. All of these kids deserved the best. They have the right to a safe existence and a steady place to grow up…  Lena wouldn’t be able to provide any of them at the moment.
She wasn’t even sure if she would be alive next year or six feet under the ground, literally!
“But don’t worry, I can visit the kids and my Dave as much as I want, right?” Lena said, wiping away her tears and running her fingers over Dave’s adorable tiny hair on top of his head.
Mom nodded and smiled, too. “Yes, you can.”
A bunch of youngsters raced by them, chasing a small girl with golden locks that were flying all over the place. Dave turned his head around and looked at them with his mouth open and drool pouring down his chest. The youngster seemed quite awake. He even waved his fists about and yelled a little as if to protest the terrible noise pollution surrounding him.
“Are you going to come to our charity brunch next month?” Mother inquired after a while of quiet.
“I definitely will,” Lena said with a big smile on her face, taking a quick breath. It was clear that she was really excited. “Don’t miss the chance to see these cute little kids having fun, showing off their skills to the guests, and probably meeting people who will adopt them soon and give them a family and a loving home.”
The orphanage held these charity brunches twice a year to get individuals from all walks of life to help make the lives of these kids better in some manner.
Instead of merely being a guest, Lena had opted to help with the planning. She didn’t have a lot of money, but this way, she could still be a part of the brunch.
******
Kellen let out a sigh as he looked out the window of his living room. His duplex apartment offered a lovely view, but it didn’t help his mood at all at that moment.
Kellen’s heart was pounding in his throat after the nearly kiss this morning, and he rushed out of the store. He had kissed Lena many times before, and the memories of those kisses had never left him. But the instant their lips touched, he thought he felt something break inside his chest. He remembered how her lips tasted, how she moaned, and how her eyes looked as if they were making love.
He had a strong want to turn around, go back to her office, and take her away to a remote area where they could relive their old memories and talk about the passion they had.
It just couldn’t be.
He contacted Selene instead and met her at a restaurant. When she kissed him, he didn’t stop her but instead kissed her back. But unhappily, it still didn’t seem right, like all the previous times Selene had kissed him. It tasted flat and didn’t have any of the intensity that normally came over him when he kissed Lena.
Selene appeared happy, too, and she definitely didn’t agree with Kellen about how close they were.
It simply made Kellen even angrier.
It all felt off.
“You met Lena?” It didn’t seem like a question. Celeste Hart spoke it more like she was sitting on the couch across from Kellen.
Kellen was shocked as he stared at his mother.
How did she find out about it?
“Selene told me,” Celeste said before Kellen could even ask.
Kellen grumbled and then stopped talking. He had to tell Selene to stop what she was doing. He didn’t want a fiancée who liked to move news around for no reason and in a way that annoyed him.
Kellen softly murmured, “She’s my new client’s business partner,” and then he turned to stare out the window again.
“You need to get over that dangerous woman, son,” Celeste said firmly, yet her eyes were gentle on her son, who was now looking at her in disbelief.
“You came to my engagement party with Selene, and you still say that I haven’t moved on from Lena?” Kellen shouted. He let out a deep breath, and his frown disappeared as he saw Celeste quiver.
He recognized that he had grown quite defensive, and his actions were giving away things he hated about himself.
He despised Lena for shattering his heart, but he also couldn’t stop thinking about her every second.
Celeste put a hand on Kellen’s to calm him. “I just want my only son to be happy.”
He hadn’t told his mother that he was engaged to Selene more as a business deal than as a relationship based on love or other feelings. But it looked like Celeste was starting to see through him, even if he had his mouth shut.
Celeste had never hated Lena before, but now that Lena’s true face had been revealed, Celeste hated her with all her heart. It was clear that Celeste was now very determined to keep her only kid away from people like Lena, following a very instructive talk with Selene.
“I’ve moved on, Mom. I really have.” It seemed like he was trying to convince himself more than his mother. “She’ll get the divorce papers in a few days. Our marriage will finally be over.” His voice broke without him meaning to. He couldn’t help but give up that tiny bit.
Lena fell back onto the soft cushion and stared at the IV line that was connected to the back of her hand.
She didn’t think it would be as exciting as she had thought Chemotherapy would be.
She was transported to the infusion suite and given pre-medications once she got to the hospital. When she asked the nurse, a middle-aged lady with a perpetual smile on her face, what it was, the nurse told her it was just anti-nausea medication. The nurse put an IV in her arm and then departed. She came back every 10 minutes to check on her.